Rep. Mike Thompson Applauds New E-Waste Recycling Initiative

Congressman Mike Thompson (CA-1), a senior member of the House Committee on Ways and Means, today applauded the Consumer Electronics Association, Best Buy, Panasonic, Sony, Toshiba, and other consumer electronics industry leaders for launching a new electronics recycling program to minimize e-waste. The “Billion Pound Challenge” initiative will significantly increase responsible electronics recycling nationwide by requiring the electronics industry to recycle one billion pounds of e-waste in the next year.

“I am pleased that major leaders in the consumer electronics industry are taking concrete action to address the e-waste crisis,” said Rep. Thompson. “While there's been progress in the recycling of old electronics equipment, much more work needs to be done. The ‘Billion Pound Challenge' will help accomplish our goals by making the electronics industry part of the solution to e-waste. This isn't just smart environmental policy - it's corporate responsibility and accountability at its finest. I'm proud to be involved with this initiative and encourage other consumer electronics groups to participate in the challenge.”

Each year, millions of tons of electronics equipment are discarded in the U.S. These products frequently end up in landfills, where they release toxic chemicals such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and flame retardants into the environment. Of the small percentage of e-waste that is collected for recycling or reuse, the majority is exported to developing nations such as China, Ghana, India, Nigeria, and Thailand for unsafe salvage and metals recovery.

Congressman Thompson has been a longtime advocate in the fight against e-waste. In the 109^th Congress, Rep. Thompson formed the bipartisan E-Waste Working Group to develop a nationwide approach for the responsible disposal and recycling of e-waste. In 2009, Rep. Thompson hosted the first-ever Congressional e-waste recycling event to highlight the impact of e-waste on the environment. And in 2010, he introduced legislation to limit the export of electronic waste to foreign countries and plans to reintroduce similar legislation this year. Moving forward, Rep. Thompson will continue to work with his colleagues to highlight the impact of e-waste and the importance of responsible electronics recycling.